Detachable heel for footwear.



l. A. H. & H. J. DREW. I

DETACHABLE HEEL FOR FOOTWEARI APPLICATION FILED Anais. I9I5.

1 1 60, 1 52, Patented Nov. 16, 1915.

To all whom t may concern:

UNTE 'STATES Ara* JHN ALFREDiI-IUGHgES DREW, F FITZROY, AND HENRY JAIVIES DREW/V., OF ,NGE/TE i i ll ['.l.ZIR.OY,y MELBOURNE, VICTORIA, AUSTRALIA. "i

v:D:ETACIzlABLE HEEL FOR FOOTWEAR. f'

Be it known `that we, JOHN ALFRED i HUGHES DREW, a subject of the King of Great Britain andy Ireland, and a. resident of the city of Fitzroy, a suburb of the city of Melbourne, in the county of Bourke, State `of Victoria, Commonwealth of Australia, (whose post-office address is 137 Gerv trude street, in the said city of Fitzroy,) and HENRY JAMES DREW, a subject of the King of Great Britain and Ireland, and a resident a of the postal district of North Fitzroy, ar

suburb of the city of Fitzroy, a suburb of the city of Melbourne, in the county' of Bourke, State of Victoria, Commonwealth of Australia, '.(whose post-office address is 4 `Reid street, in the said postal ,district of North Fitzroy,) have invented certain new and useful Improvements in or Relating to Detachable Heels for Footwear, Ofwhich Athe following is a specification.

This invention relates to detachable heels for footwear of the kind wherein a heel may .have not always footwear.

be readily removed and renewed when worn. Hitherto a number 4of heels of this character have been suggested, many of which, however, have been liable to loss causing incon-` venience tothe wearer. Inv addition, theyh been capable of being easily applied or .removed in a minimum of time Yas when screws-have been employed to retain the heels it has` generally been necessary to entirely remove the screws, to replace worn heels for example.V Some heels also *have been of a somewhat complicated constructionl and costly to manufacture. Further,

it .is generally obvious that detachable heels v are attachments to the fixed heels of the The object of this invention is to provide a heelwjhich may be applied or removed and interehanged in yay minimum of time, is cheap, simple, light and not liable to sudden loss. Itr is l also only necessary to slightly slacken and fnot to remove retention screwswhen -it is desired to remove and ref new a heel. In addition, it is not readily apparent to the eyethat the invention is an attachment to the heel ofthe boot or shoe.

Referring to the drawings which form a part of this vspecificationz--Figure 1 is a side elevation of the. fixed heel of a boot or shoe showingfretention screws carried thereby. Fig. 2 is a reverse perspective view of a holding plate used with a detachable Specification of Letters Patent. Application filed August 23, 1915. Serial No. 46,947.

Patented Nov. 16, 1915.

leather heel. "F ig. 3 lis a sectional View of the holding plate seen in Fig. 2. Fig. Lifis a reverse plan of a holding plate used with a rubber heel. Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section on line A-, Fig. 4... Fig. 6 is a cross section on line BB, Fig. 4. Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a- 'leatherheel according to this invention. The holding plate is' removed. Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a complete rubber heel according to the invention. Fig. 9 is a front end view of the fixed heel of a boot or shoe carrying a detachableleather heel according to the vinvention, the holding plate and leather'lifts or laminations being assembled. v F ig. 10 is a sectional'view of the fixed heelof a boot or shoe carrying a rubberheel according to the invention, the embedded holding plate being clearly seen.

The invention is applied to the fixed heel 2 of va boot or shoe. Secured to the bottom of the heel is a front and a back retention screw -disposed ina longitudinalV line' or one behind the other. More than two screws may be employed. Each screw has a shank 3 .projecting beyondthe lower face of the heel. Integral with the shank is a coned bearing surface 4 disposed between the said shank and the head 5 of the screw',v as 1s usual in most screws.

The invention includes aholding plate 6 of the same conformation ybu-t preferably slightly smaller in area than the fixed heel 2. lThe plate is provided with a front edge 7, two side edges 8, and a rounded back edge 9. In cross section the holding plate may be concavek both longitudinally and laterallyu- Formed in the plate 6 is a cen tral longitudinal elongated depression having a wall 10'and a bottom r11. This depression passes from the front edge of the said plate toward the back edge. Its length will depend upon circumstances, as also will its width and depth. iFormed in the longitu- 'as at 15. With each reduced vpassageway ression of the saidholding plate. Formed "etween the front screw head -retention hole 16 and the back screw head entrance hole 12 is a back bridge 19 extending across the central longitudinal depression of the holding plate. y ut-pressed from the holding plate 6 is a series of retention tongues 19a. Each tongue is pointed.

Secured by the tongues 19a of the holding Vplate 6 is a heel formed of leather or the like. This heel consistsl of an` upper lift or lamination and a lower lift, or lamination. The upper lift 21 yis made U-shaped cyr-in the form ofa horse-shoe. The lower lift or lamination 24 also comprisesa horse shoe or U-shaped conformation. In practice the tongues 19' are preferably first driven intov and through the upper lift.-v The points of the tongues protrude and are bent over. The lower` lift is-then secured to the upper lift by brads, .nails or the like. Addi- 'tional lifts may be used if desired.

Instead of employing leather or like material for use with the holding plate 6, rubber or other resilient material 29 may be employed. The holding 4plate is providedgwitli a series of out-pressedtongues' 30 somel of which maybe opposed. Formed in the holding plate is a plurality of idle holes, indicated at 30a.' AThe plate is then embedded'in the said material 29 which is provided with an upper surface 31 bearing against the fixed heel 2 of the footwear and a lower wearing surface 32. Formed in the lower surface 32 of the resilient heel is an elongated. depression or cavity indicated at 33. formed in which are screw slotways,

indicated at 34, corresponding with the entrance holes, passageways and retention holes of the holding plate. Across each slotway 34, before the resilient heel is applied to the fixed heel 2,"is a jointing web` 35.

lTo apply the invention to the fixed heel of a vboot or shoe two retention screws are first driven 4into the'said fixed heel 2, one behind the other, the distance apart corresponding with the distance between the en.

trance holes 12 in the detachable heel. The heads 5 of the screws are now passed .through the front andback entrance holes 12 or" the holding plate 6 of the detachable heel. The heel is then pushed forwardly toward the toe of the footwear, the sides of the reduced passageway 13 passing from each entrance hole 12 bearing beneath the screw head 5. As the heel is pressed into position the said sides of each passageway 13 spring orfgivc permitting.l the heel to move until the screw heads are accommodated in the pockets formed by thescrew head retention holesl 16. 'Theh'eel cannot now be moved'backwardly or from position without using pressure and cannot fall from the boot because of the inclined lips 17 of the retention holes'r4 16. The screws are screwed home, the coned bearing surfaces 4 of the 'retention Screws bearing upon 'the screw head beds formed' by the lips` 17. In the case of 'a resilient heel the webs when broken serve to form a joint between 'the fixed and detachable heels, preventing the entrance of foreignv matter aroundthe screws. To remove the heel it is only necessary to slightly slacken the screws when the said heel may be moved backwardlyand sprung from position. The operation is the same either with a leather or like heel or with'a resilient heel.

Having now described our invention what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. The combination with a fixed heel carrying a plurality of retention screws, of a 'detachable heel having a holding plate pro- `vided with a. plurality ofyelongated screwholes, said'sc'rew-holes having spring sides adapted to be sprung apart to admit the',

shank of each screw at an end of each screw.- hole and confine the screws for fastening the holding plate to the heel. i

2. In a detachable heel for footwear, a holding plate having formed therein a plurality of screw-head entrance and retention holes and passageways formed between the .entrance and retention holes, the sides of the .passageways beingy flexible, said flexible sides of the passageways being adapted to be sprung apartto admit the screws into the retention holes and cogifine the holding plate to the heel.

3. In a detachable heel forfootwe'ar, a holding plate having formed therein a plurality of screw head entrance holes passing from each of which is a reduced passageway Y having s ring sides inclined toward each other anl upwardly away 'from the entrance/f depression' formed in its lower surface and f jhaving screw slot-ways formed in the depression andcorresponding in position with -tlie entrance and retention holes of the e1nbedded holding plate, and means formed r over the slot-ways for forming' a closure to l ,4 prevent the. -entrance oi' ici-eign matter around the screws.

5. A detachable heelfor footwear yconsistp ing of-'avliolding plate having formed there` in a plurality ofscrew head entrance holes passing from each of which is a passage- Way having spring sides, said plate having 'a plurality of screw'head retention holesl formed therein each retention hole communicating with the passageway of an entrance hole, and a heel of resilient material in .which the holding plate is embedded, said heel having a depression formed in its lower surface'and havingsci'ew slotways formed in the depression and corresponding in positionnf'ith the entrance and retention holes of-tlie-embeddedliolding plate.

'6; The combination with axed heel cai'- rying depending screws each haring;y a. coiied .Copies of this patent may be obtained for bearing surface, Aoi" a. holding plate providedwith a seriesv oi out-pressed tongues and idle holes, said plate having' a plurality of screw lie-'ad entrance holes paesini,`- frein each of h. is a reduced passageway having springsides inclined toward each-other and upwardly away from the entrance 4 l1oles5 said plateliaving a plurality of screw lhead retention holes formed thereinl each retention hole being provided Vwith anA inclined circumferential lip and communicating with the passageway of an entrance hole, and a` heel of resilient material in which the holding platn is" embedded, said heel having formed t ierein screw slotways correspond' ing'in position with the entrance and r'etention holes of 'the holding' plate.

In testimony whereof we havehereunto ahxed'our signatures in the presence of two ve cents each, by addressing the ,Comm,ssioiier of `Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

